Chapter 344

After a day of debate.

Luo De and Pantalone failed to convince each other.

During that time, Zhongli saw off the actors of the Zubayr Theatre; besides deducting their performance fees, he also gave them a generous tip.

Afterward, he was just an enthusiastic onlooker.

While brewing tea and drinking it himself, he listened with great interest to Luo De and Pantalone arguing about him.

As the person involved.

He paid no heed to Pantalone's malice toward him, nor did he feel glad about Luo De's defense of him.

He simply watched the play calmly, as always.

Only when both had worn themselves out from arguing did he smile and say, "You two, are you hungry? If you are, stay here for a meal—I'll cook."

It seemed he was afraid Luo De and Pantalone might doubt his cooking skills.

He also emphasized, "I once learned some cooking techniques from Marcos; though not as refined and delicious as his, it can still be considered flavorful, fragrant, and delicious—if you don't mind, my friends."

"No problem, naturally it's no problem."

Luo De had eaten food personally prepared by Zhongli.

The taste was quite good.

How to put it—even a god who has lived six thousand years, if he only spends little time learning cooking, his culinary skill is absolutely beyond what ordinary people can match.

Pantalone hesitated a moment.

Seeing Luo De readily agree, he also lifted his head, unwilling to be outdone, and said, "Eat—why not?"

"Alright, friends, please wait a moment; I'll be right back."

Having said that, Zhongli rose and left, leaving the place entirely to Luo De and Pantalone.

This time.

They did not argue anymore.

Instead, each picked up a cup of tea and drank while gazing at each other.

It must be said.

The fresh tea from the ancient tea tree beneath Qingce Village is indeed delicious.

Even though Luo De doesn't understand tea leaves, he knows that after drinking this tea, the fragrance lingers on the lips and teeth, refreshing the heart and spleen—far surpassing any tea he has had before.

Pantalone seems accustomed to this kind of tea.

His face lacked Luo De's delight; he merely sipped it in small mouthfuls, and besides, he remarked to Luo De, "You haven't seen the world."

How could Luo De tolerate that?

He retorted directly, "That's right—I can't compare to you, the behind-the-scenes boss of Northland Bank; what I earn with my own hands naturally doesn't count as worldly experience compared to the blood and flesh of Teyvat's people."

Hmph—

After being mocked, Pantalone stopped sparring with Luo De, raised his eyebrows, and sat back sideways.

The tension between them also gradually faded with this quiet.

But they both knew.

This is only temporary.

In fact.

The debate just now.

At first, it centered on Zhongli: Luo De thought Pantalone's actions were too extreme, while Pantalone thought Luo De was bewitched by the god's appearance.

Later on.

What they argued about gradually shifted to Luo De thinking that, for the sake of that so-called ideal, Pantalone was simply going too far.

Pantalone would surely dislike hearing that.

In his view.

Those who undertake great endeavors should not fuss over minor details.

It's just bankrupting a few people, killing a few people, right?

In Pantalone's words.

The root of all evil is Liyue; as long as Liyue's false justice persists, the whole continent will sooner or later suffer greatly.

Therefore, his actions are righteous; Luo De's remarks are merely the perspective of a mediocre person, groundless criticism.

The two of them shared such a heavy atmosphere.

Until four hours later, when the sky had grown dark, Zhongli brought out a big pot of Liyue's specialty, pickled fresh, and only then did it end.

As for why it took so long.

One reason is that the production process for pickled fresh is very complicated; just the preparations take over an hour.

Another is that gathering the materials, as Zhongli said, took considerable time.

At the dinner table.

Listening to Zhongli vividly recount his process of purchasing the ingredients—down to the exact location and name of each shop—Pantalone's face eventually showed a strange hue.

In his stereotypical impression.

Gods do not partake in mortal food.

Especially those gods who bring calamity to thousands; they spend all day hiding—let alone someone like Zhongli who knows the common folk inside out, possibly never even setting foot on the street.

Although he had long known that Zhongli is a god who enjoys wandering the mortal realm.

Deep down, he also firmly believed that Zhongli did this merely to better control Liyue, not to enter the lives of Liyue's people and seek their happiness.

But after truly coming into close contact with Zhongli.

He discovered that he had actually developed a hallucination he had never experienced before.

This Rock King Emperor.

He really does seem to be a mortal who gets along with mortals, and, just as Luo De said, he controls Mora's power—only because the gods are immortal and able to stay true to their hearts.

"It's all fake—"

"You're just acting this out to get me to cooperate for peace."

Pan Tuoluonie shook his head, tossing out all those ideas that went against his stereotypes, then deliberately put on a stern face and continued eating.

"Tsk—"

Seeing this, Luo De felt a slight disappointment.

I thought Pan Tuoluonie would fall for this.

I never expected this guy to actually pua himself; instead, his emotions became even more intense.

"Stubborn guy."

Luo De quietly muttered a complaint in his heart and also continued eating silently.

Just like that.

After Zhongli freeloaded food and drink for three days, Pan Tuoluonie finally couldn't take it anymore and brought up the matter of returning to Snezhnaya.

"Your goods still haven't arrived."

"As per the contract."

"Mr. Pan Tuoluonie, you still need to stay in Sumeru Cheng."

As soon as Pan Tuoluonie mentioned leaving, Luo De had something to say, directly producing the contract the two had signed earlier.

There is something Pantaloon didn't get wrong.

Luo De wouldn't let him leave.

Indeed, it was with the intention of being on good terms.

He very much needed Pantaloon's support.

Not only because of the terrifying financial power of the North Nation Bank, but also because with Pantaloon's help, pulling out the nail that Zandik buried in Sumeru Cheng would be much easier.

Don't look at how fiercely they're arguing now; Luo De is very clear that once Pantaloon successfully lets go of his hostility toward Zhongli, this guy will definitely become his closest friend among the Fatui, even better than Dada Liya.

So Luo De didn't give up any opportunity to make Pantaloon uneasy.

That's why, in just three days, Pantaloon—who has roamed the business sea for who knows how many years and never known what failure is—actually felt uneasy and directly came up with the idea of wanting to leave quickly.

But there is a contract.

Even if Pantaloon is unwilling, he must obey the contract and has no choice but to stay here.

Otherwise.

Then his earlier words would just be nonsense, since he himself wouldn't keep the contract he set, making his criticism of Morax baseless.

"I won't go back to Snezhnaya; just wandering around the city should be fine, right?" "Staying here every day eating chaff with you guys, I just want a change of flavor."

Pantaloon, a bit impatient, brought up another request.

"Okay."

"No problem."

Luo De agreed this time quite readily.

Of course.

His agreement was swift.

It's because during Pantaloon's time in Sumeru Cheng, wherever he went, Luo De would follow.

Regarding that.

As long as Luo De didn't keep nagging him all day about Morax, Pantaloon had no objection.

Just talking about it is annoying.

Originally it was he who brought up the topic, but Luo De tormented him so much he felt awful all over.

Thus, in the following days.

Luo De then wandered around Sumeru Cheng together with Pantaloon.

Although under Pantaloon's stern protest.

Zhongli didn't follow.

But Luo De's mouth still gave Pantaloon a headache.

He had never imagined.

That this merchant, who was the most skilled at talking, could actually be nagged by Luo De to the point of nearly breaking down.

This guy indeed wasn't deliberately bringing up Morax to anger him.

But he directly launched a personal attack on himself! Just like now.

On the treasure merchant street of Sumeru Cheng, Pantaloon had just taken a liking to an antique, was about to ask the price, when Luo De's sarcastic voice came from beside him: "Hey hey, you, such a big merchant, also need to haggle? Please, take care of the boss's small business, which originally doesn't make much money, and you still have to knock down the price—are you really that short on a little Mora?"

Pantaloon's mouth twitched, his teeth itching with anger, he directly threw the antique back and turned to leave.

He had only taken two steps.

Luo De's voice again drifted to his ears, clinging like a bone‑deep nag: "You broke someone's stuff and didn't buy it—alas, as a merchant you don't even know how to sympathize with your peers; you still talk about righteousness, truly hypocritical."

"I!"

"Where did I break something?"

Pantaloon looked angrily at Luo De.

"Here."

"Look."

Luo De pointed.

It was plainly visible—a small scratch had appeared on the antique.

Meanwhile, the shop owner stood nearby, beaming with a smile, looking at Luo De as if he had seen a deity.

「You」

「Hmph—」

Pantaluonie couldn't be bothered to argue with Luo De, he simply threw down some Mora and bought the scratched antique.

Then he regretted it again.

Because just now, out of anger, although he had paid, he didn't take the antique with him and stormed off directly.

As a result, Luo De seized the opportunity again.

He directly grabbed the antique bottle, chuckling as he chased after him: "Mr. Pantaluonie, you forgot your thing."

Pantaluonie, already so angry he felt dizzy, instinctively wanted to smash the bottle.

But thinking of Luo De's foul mouth, he had to give up that idea, keeping a stern face as he held the broken bottle.

He had come out just to relax.

But Pantaluonie's mood was even worse; even after Luo De treated him to lunch at noon, he felt unable to enjoy his food.

He didn't know why.

He had never felt such anger before.

No matter how he tried to calm himself inside, he just couldn't calm down, and even now he was still filled with uncontrollable rage.

As he ate the low-quality food he usually couldn't even be bothered to look at.

Luo De secretly fingered the Thousand-Night Floating Dream in his hand, smiling as he asked: "Mr. Pantaluonie, what do you think?"

「Huh? 」

Pantaluonie furrowed his brows, not understanding what Luo De was saying.

So Luo De deliberately explained: "Are you angry now? Are you vexed? Do you just want to slap me to death and then toss all this stuff in your hand into the trash?"

「What do you mean? 」

Pantaluonie, whose heart had been struck by Luo De's words, looked at him with an uneasy expression.

What Luo De said was correct.

He is indeed in that state now.

But this isn't something Luo De did for his own good, is it? This guy is now using the topic to mock me; if it weren't for the fact that I can't beat him, I'd probably smash this plate of paste onto Luo De's face.

「Oh dear—」

「See, you're getting worked up again. 」

With the notion that you can make someone angry to death without consequence, Luo De gave a weird hehe laugh and said: "It's just that after I provoked you like this, you almost lost control of your emotions, Mr. Pantaluonie; your so‑called absolute justice seems overly emotional."

Upon saying that.

Pantaluonie stared blankly at once, then sat there dazed, as if he had fallen into some state of confusion.

Luo De wasn't in a hurry to provoke him either, eating his food leisurely and even feeling like ordering a large glass of sparkling wine.

This state lasted a long time.

Luo De finished his food and drink, and only then did Pantaluonie finally snap out of his daze, looking at Luo De with a strange gaze: "You did that on purpose?"

「You can't tell? 」

Luo De gave a hehe laugh: "Looks like my acting has improved—you, who are used to seeing people with smiles that hide knives, still can't see through it!"

「Hmph—」

How could he not see it? It's just that after being mentally tormented by Luo De for several days straight, Pantaluonie's thoughts had become a bit muddled.

At this moment.

His heart was no longer the previous irritability; instead, it was an unprecedented calm.

Pantaluonie was quite aware.

What Luo De said was not wrong.

He had indeed been so angry just now that he was on the verge of losing control, unable to even regulate his emotions, to the point that any random passerby could tell.

Although this situation was somewhat abnormal.

But he still had to admit that, just as Luo De said, he truly couldn't fully control his emotions, leaving open the possibility of being driven by personal feelings.

And such emotional regulation.

Indeed, it cannot achieve absolute fairness and justice.

「Can Molakesi do that? 」

「Even if his close relatives committed grave wickedness, could he remain unashamed and unangry, handling it fairly? 」

After thinking for a long time, Pantaluonie, having realized the issue, once again brought up Zhongli on his own initiative.

However, Luo De countered with a question: "Do you know the Ruotuo Dragon King?"

「Yes. 」

Pantaluonie nodded.

The Ruotuo Dragon King was an old comrade‑in‑arms of Molakesi.

When he wreaked havoc in Liyue.

Did Molakesi show any restraint?

Luo De said gloomily: "He can show no mercy even to his old friend; do you think he qualifies to claim absolute fairness and justice?"

(End of chapter)